As part of the formal British process to ensure that a proper candidate was always ready and prepared to don the latest Excalibur armor and wield the "Excalibur" sword, its sheath and the "Pridwin" shield, MI-6, Britain's Intelligence Community, opted to have a Parliamentary voted-on candidate always available and in 'hot standby' to rapidly take on the mantle of "Excalibur" should the Excalibur Accord be deemed necessary to enact. If ever the situation arose to enact the Excalibur Accord, the operation plan called "Project: Pridwin" would be activated to rapidly initialize the next new Excalibur knight.

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In December 1999, the man who had trained for the spot for 20 years had died after discovery the month before of an unexpected and aggressive strain of cancer in the candidate; a strain of cancer never seen before...on Earth.

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The next person in line for Excalibur was a Scottish-born wrestler known as Rory Cavendish. Rory had gone through all the formal training to be the next Excalibur and was fully capable of taking the mantle, however, politics being what it was, some in the House of Lords believed Rory was  was not "British" enough to be the poster boy as the next Excalibur.  Amidst a time set towards entering a new century (and the Christmas season), secret meetings turned into full blown house sessions, and the house sessions turned into rabid political debates.  The next in line behind Rory was a well to do, British aristocrat named Sir Thomas Greene.  Sir Greene, on paper, was considered more "British" than Rory, however, his combat skills were lacking as compared to Rory's.  Nonetheless, in an unprecedented referendum in the House of Lords on Christmas Eve, Rory was overridden to be the next in line for Excalibur, and instead, Sir Greene was charged to be the next active Excalibur candidate by the House of Lords.  Although the Crown and the House of Commons were agitated by this, hundreds of other political issues, the holidays, the turn of the century, 2K Virus issues and other domestic issues demanded greater focus rather than this highly unimportant issue about a sword wielder that hadn't been activated since 1945. As such, politics being what it was, Parliament voted and Sir Greene became the candidate to be the next Excalibur.  Rory was upset over the decision, but as a good British citizen, he kept a 'stiff upper lip' and backed up Parliament stating their choice was sound, even though Rory's heart was broken over the usurpation.

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In January of 2000 A.D., the world was invaded by the alien Soltan Star Empire.  Their goal: reap Earth's metallurgic and magical resources and enslave the human race.  It didn't take but 10 minutes for the Parliament of the United Kingdom to agree on activating the Excalibur Accord and initiating Project: Pridwin to initiate the next knightly Excalibur superhero candidate - Sir Thomas Greene.

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As per British tradition (and Project: Pridwin protocols), the man who was to wield Excalibur had to be knighted by the king or queen of England prior to taking on the mantle as the Knight Regent for the Crown.  The Soltans were already attacking parts of London, but Westminster Abbey, Parliament nor the Tower of London had come under attack, thus allowing for Sir Greene, the members of the Priory and the Queen of England (and her entourage) to make their way to the Excalibur Bunker (which again was designed to withstand a nuclear blast ergo a far safer place for the Queen Mother) under the Tower of London so that Sir Greene could be properly knighted and become the new Excalibur.

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As Project: Pridwin was enacted, one of MI-6's more pragmatic supervisors involved in the process believed it couldn't hurt to have Rory Cavendish join in on the ceremony in the Excalibur Bunker for two reasons: one, the MI-6 supervisor was Scottish and was unhappy at Rory's treatment by Parliament and as such thought that at least being able to 'see' the ceremony that should have been done to Rory would at least be a small recompense for what Rory was put through, and two, Rory was a highly trained combatant amidst an alien invasion - he'd be a great person to have alongside them should they encounter any aliens along the way or during the ceremony.   Rory was escorted by the MI-6 supervisor to the Tower of London along with Sir Greene and the rest of the new people listed in the Project: Pridwin operation. Rory wasn't too happy to go along, but when it was mentioned the Queen would be there, he felt that it was his duty to assist in providing whatever protection was needed for her in the process and thus went with the MI-6 supervisor to the Excalibur Bunker.

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Once at the Excalibur Bunker, everything went to Hell.

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As the Project: Pridwin entourage descended the circular staircase to the Excalibur Bunker, several magical ward stones lit up and set off audible alarms.  Everyone in the Project: Pridwin team was trained to know what there were, however, they'd been removed months before for "recharging" and never replaced, yet they were now here and they were alarming.  The wards were set to go off if anything with an alien physiology, other than human, was in the circular stairwell; as per the ward's alarms, there was an alien amongst them.  The question was...which one was the alien?

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MI-6 security and the Royal Guards had their guns out and pointing to each of the entourage or each other, all the while encircling and protection the Queen.  Each guard and agent was 100% unsure who the alien amongst them was, causing a complete breakdown in the process.  That's when Sir Greene spoke up and with proper British alacrity, stated that their mission was to properly knight the next Excalibur and as such, the new Excalibur would be in a far better position to deal with any alien in their midst that any of the currently nervous and suspicious agents or guards.  He recommended the team continue to the bunker and that if the alien made any attempts against anyone in the entourage, the alien would give away their true self and thus would be an easy target to take down with such highly trained men and women on the team.  All nodded their approval to the plan, all moving step by step down the circular staircase down into the Excalibur Bunker.  When they arrived, several Priory personnel were aghast over seeing the entourage training guns on each other, all with suspicious and nervous eyes.  After explaining to the Priory clerics what had happened, the Priory clerics confirmed that the wards were in fact genuine and that the clerics installed the wards earlier than what was scheduled...merely out of sheer boredom. Thus, the wards were telling the truth - an alien WAS amongst them. 

 

The big question still remained...who.

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The Queen insisted on hurrying and getting the ceremony started so their 'alien' situation could be resolved with the new Excalibur knight in charge.  As the ceremony started, Rory saw that everyone was sweating in the non-air conditioned bunker...even the Queen herself; that is....all except Sir Greene.  His skin was not shiny, sweaty or even perspiring.  For a pasty aristocrat like Greene, whom Rory has fought in dozens of training session in the past, Greene ALWAYS perspired, even seconds into a fight.  It was a condition Rory always thought was an 'equalizer' in match-up comparisons, knowing your rich, aristocratic opponent perspired more than you did under pressure.

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The problem was Sir Greene was not sweating.

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Rory interrupted the Queen during her knighting of Sir Greene.  All guns became trained on Rory and the Royal Guards encircled the Queen once again.  Rory spoke plainly and calmed everyone down stating, "I'm sorry to interrupt or offend, but, Sir Greene, you'd told me once that if ever you were to be knighted as the next Excalibur that no greater blessing could be done unto you unless a particular passage was read from the Bible; a verse your long departed mother deemed worthy for a knight.  I'm just fulfilling my duty in reminding you of what you once told me was more important than the sword itself.  That's all.  My apologies to the Queen and all present. Please, carry on."

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With that, Sir Greene is a momentary look of confusion slowly turned to Rory, focused again and smiled, saying in a kindly yet aristocratic mannerism, "I did say that didn't I?  You are a proper gentleman to remind me of that...that verse.  What was the verse's number?  I'm a bit flustered at the moment, Rory old friend.  You remember what it was, right, old chap?"

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Rory replied, "Of course, Sir Greene.  It was Galatians 2:4".

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The Priory clerics immediately became nervous, as did the Queen.  The Queen was well versed in the bible and as such, understood the verse. Sir Greene looked to the Queen as with all formality and reverence, requested she recite the verse in memory of his long departed mother as part of the ceremony.

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The Queen acquiesced to Sir Greene's request and read the verse:

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"Galatians 2, verse 4: And that because of false brethren unawares brought in, who came in privily to spy out our liberty which we have in Christ Jesus, that they might bring us into bondage".  

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With that, Sir Greene looked about nervously, realizing the jig was up.  The Queen ordered, "Guards, seize Sir Greene immediately! He is the alien spy!" and with that the fight began.

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Sir Greene was indeed the alien. 

 

In the ensuing fight, guns blazing, fist flying, furniture breaking, smoke filling the already heated bunker, Sir Greene's mask tore from his face revealing him to be a Soltan Star Empire alien spy who had been masquerading at Sir Greene. The Royal Guard and most of the MI-6 agents fought and died against the deadly Soltan spy, leaving only two Priory clergymen, one MI6 agent, the Queen and Rory alive.

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Rory fought like a warrior born against the Soltan spy.

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Amidst the pitched combat, Rory made his way to the "Excalibur" sword and its sheath. When Rory drew the sword, the last Excalibur hero's armor formed about him, saving Rory from a killing blow by the Soltan spy. Rory took Excalibur and cleaved the Soltan spy from shoulder to crotch, literally slicing the alien in half. 

 

Rory quickly assessed the Queen Mother's health, for which she arose from the ground and mentioned Rory's brilliance in his deduction.  Before Rory could say another word, the Queen pulled Excalibur from Rory's hand...and knighted him on the spot, just as dozens of armed British Commandos and Royal Guards arrived to take the Queen to safety. In a parting statement, the Queen told "Sir Cavendish" to go and 'save the Kingdom' and to return to her once his task was done.  Sir Cavendish swore to the Queen he would do so, and with that, bolted up and out of the Tower of London with Excalibur, the sword's sheath and the Pridwin shield into battle.The Queen was taken to another secretive bunker since Buckingham Palace and Westminster Abbey were now being bombed by the Soltans. There, she remained, safe and protected until the end of the Soltan Invasion.

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A post-invasion investigation about the spy revealed that the Soltan spy's mission was to steal the Excalibur sword, sheath and shield from the humans and murder their queen with the same sword.  The spy was responsible for the poisoning of the Excalibur candidate that died of the unnatural cancer in December 1999, and was directly responsible for manipulating several House of Lords representatives in creating the political turmoil that led Sir Greene to be the next Excalibur.  Since Rory had too many 'friends', the spy decided to select Sir Greene to masquerade as to get the sword.  Sir Greene didn't have any friends; Rory's friends would have perceived Rory's awkward changes, thus Sir Greene was the better tactical choice to replace. The remains of the real Sir Green were later discovered stuffed in an enclosed wine barrel in Sir Greene's wine cellar, his body hacked into pieces to fit into the barrel.  He was given a proper funeral and, as per his will, he gave all of his willed estate to his seven illegitimate children; a factor missed during the Excalibur candidate vetting process for Sir Greene.

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Over the next several months, Rory fought like a warrior born.  He felled thousands of Soltan troops, engaged in hundreds of battles and fought alongside Earth's greatest super-groups (and even a couple of villain groups that fought against the Soltans), military troops and militias, rightfully earning the title as "Excalibur".  He rarely rested, and when he did, he wrote letters of encouragement to parent-less children, war-torn families and even the Queen of England.  His courage was a a true testament to the dark days that Great Britain faced during the invasion.  Half of England was either destroyed or overtaken by Soltan forces; most of London remained a burning conflagration throughout most of the Soltan invasion period.  regardless, Rory fought the good fight as a true knight of the realm and a relentless champion of Great Britain.

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In his last battle with the Soltans, he and a band of mystical knights known as Knights Arcanus joined forces to fell a massive magic siphoning tower located in Greenwich, England.  The tower, along with several other similar Soltan-designed towers worldwide, were draining Earth's magical energies.  Once the magic was drained, it was believed that life energies on Earth would slowly begin to die off, as would life on the planet.  To that end, Rory fought alongside the Knights Arcanus against overwhelming Soltan defensive forces.  Sadly, in the final push to set off the mystical bombs needed to destroy the tower, Rory was killed saving the Knights Arcanus leader, Samhain Knight, from a deathblow by a super-powered Soltan commander that was defending the siphon tower.  The rest of the Knights Arcanus killed the super-powered Soltan commander in kind, however, Rory..."Excalibur"...was dead.

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The Knights Arcanus retrieved Rory's body, as well as several dozen other fallen warriors at the battle site before setting off the mystic bombs that basically imploded the siphoning tower.  Rory's body was brought to the battle-damaged Excalibur Museum in Yorkshire, England (see: Excalibur II) by the Knights Arcanus and buried on the museum's grounds.  There, a simple marker was erected with a sign posted on it by Samhain Knight stating:

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Here lies

Sir Rory Cavendish

EXCALIBUR

Died: 17 August 2000 

The Greatest Knight of Great Britain.

He is your champion. He is our hero.

May we all aspire to one day

be worthy of his sacrifice.

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Days after Rory's death, the Soltan Star Empire retreated and fled from Earth to the dark side of Mars in defeat.  Earth was once again free, however, the price was high, and the planetary damage vast.  During the next few months, the world rebuilt itself and began to cauterize the wounds the Soltans had inflicted.  Rory's grave was but one such cauterizing.

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One of the most prolific and heart-wrenching events that occurred post-invasion was the memorial that was erected for Sir Rory Cavendish AKA Britain's Excalibur of the Soltan Invasion. Tens of thousands of the world's citizens. including international leaders, presidents, kings and queens,  traveled to Yorkshire, England to pay respect and tribute to Rory Cavendish at his grave site at the makeshift memorial.  Years later, the Excalibur museum was rebuilt to its full glory with new displays, videos and mementos of all who'd ever wielded Excalibur since the American Revolution.

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All previous Excalibur wielders were exhumed from their existing grave sites are re-interred at the Excalibur Museum, now rechristened the Excalibur Memorial and Museum site.  Each grave marker was an exquisite work of art with grand flourishes and markings worthy of a true knight's grave.

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Once again, the true "Excalibur" sword, its sheath and the "Pridwin" shield went into secretive hiding.  Since the "Excalibur Bunker" had been discovered by the Soltans, the legendary artifacts were instead taken to a new facility for the England regional "G.U.A.R.D." station known as "Camelot". There, under the fantastic levels of security, the Arthurian legendary artifacts once again became unused under the next "Excalibur Accord" demanded action.

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The fake WWII replacement forged "Excalibur" sword, sheath and "Pridwin" shield (see: Excalibur II) as well as a mock-up of Sir Cavensish's sword, shield and steath are displayed for the public at the Excalibur Memorial and Museum.  The heavy security, 2 foot thick reinforced glass around the artifacts, the clearly labeled 'magical wards' and dozens of security sensors and cameras provide an air of authenticity and belief by the general public that they are the true weapons.  Since the Excalibur Memorial and Museum's massive upgrade, millions of visitors from all over the world continue to visit the Excalibur hero grave sites and learn about their sacrifices and history at the museum.

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To this day, flowers and remembrances are placed at the foot of each Excalibur hero's grave similarly to what is done at the Vietnam Memorial Wall in Washington DC.  The Excalibur Memorial and Museum are now considered as one of the top 100 places to visit in the world as part of any decent person's "bucket list". 

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